Scott Brown Says Out-of-State Voters Should Come to N.H. Anyway to Vote for Him

Scott Brown Says Out-of-State Voters Should Come to N.H. Anyway to Vote for Him

“Well they can come over and do same-day registration and say they want to come down and vote,’’ Scott Brown said of out-of-staters who would like to vote for him in New Hampshire.
–Darren McCollester/Getty Images

Want to vote for Scott Brown in the New Hampshire Senate race, but not a New Hampshire resident? No worries. Brown told Boston’s own Howie Carr that out-of-state supporters should just “come on over’’ and vote for him anyway.

Brown made the comment last week during a radio interview on Carr’s WRKO 680 show, when a person with a Connecticut area code phone number asked why people should vote for Brown.

Host: “‘Ask Scott why people should vote for him instead of the other GOP candidates.’ That’s from Vermont actually.’’

Brown: “Well sure. The first – Where’s that from? Vermont?’’

Advertisement

Host: “Yeah. 8-6-0. Yeah.’’

Brown: “Well they can come over and do same-day registration and say they want to come down and vote. So if they feel compelled to do so, come on down.’’

Host: [Laughs] “Or is 8-6-0 Connecticut? That may be Connecticut. I’m not sure. I get confused.’’

Brown: “Yeah well whatever it is, they can come up.’’

He then transitioned to explain why he thought he was the best candidate for the job.

“He was clearly joking,’’ Elizabeth Guyton, a spokesperson for Brown, told Boston.com in an email.

Still, with New Hampshire’s same-day registration, the suggestion isn’t completely absurd. New Hampshire allows eligible residents to register to vote on the day of the election as long as they provide proof of identity, age, citizenship, and New Hampshire domicile, according to state law. The “domicile’’ requirement provides an exception for those who are temporarily absent from New Hampshire to still vote in the election, including military members, students, and teachers.

Brown, the former Massachusetts senator, is himself a recent New Hampshire transplant. He moved to the Granite State in 2013 and registered as a voter in December. He announced his bid to unseat incumbent Senator Jeanne Shaheen in March.

Advertisement

Shaheen and Brown are locked in a statistical tie according to the latest WMUR/Granite State poll, which had Shaheen with 46 percent of the vote to Brown’s 44 percent, a difference within the margin of error. A month ago, the same poll had Shaheen up 50-38 percent.